Charitable works and more

RICHARD A. SOKERKA

If there is an organization that does more charitable works than the Knights of Columbus do, it is not on my radar. In the past year, the Knights have provided more than $150 million in donations and more than 47 million hours of hands-on volunteer service. Who can top that?

And for as much as they do, the Knights have been challenged to do even more for the Church and those they serve in their communities by Patrick Kelly, Supreme Knight.

“Make no mistake: Now is a time for Knights. The past 18 months have amplified old challenges and given rise to new ones. They face our families, our faith, and our culture as a whole,” Kelly said in a speech that followed the opening Mass of the Knights’ 139th annual convention, held at St. Mary Church in New Haven, Conn., where Blessed Father McGivney, founder of the Knights, is buried. The Knights normally convene in-person each year, but 2021 marks the second year in a row that the meeting has been held virtually.

Being a Knight means “a life of faith in action, a life of boldness in brotherhood, a life worth living. Catholic men are looking for nothing less. In the Knights of Columbus, they will find it,” he said.

Kelly pointed to Pope Francis’ declaration of a Year of St. Joseph, and highlighted the Pope’s call to imitate the “creative courage” of Christ’s foster father.

“In St. Joseph, we see our mission and mandate. Guard the family. Guard the Truth. It is the only way to overcome the hurdles facing our families, the Church, and our culture,” he said. Kelly lauded St. Joseph in his role as “Guardian of the Truth” — in his case, guardian of The Truth himself, Jesus Christ.

“We, too, must defend this Truth. We live in a time of bigotry and intolerance. Key truths — about life, marriage, the nature of the family, and the meaning of freedom — are increasingly denied and even vilified. Yet, this makes our commitment to Truth all the more important. Now is the time to inspire our fellow Catholics to stand for what is right. St. Joseph is our guide. Let us make his creative courage our own, for the sake of the family, and the Truth.”

Kelly said the Truth is grounded in the Eucharist, and Knights are called to have a special reverence for the Real Presence of Christ in the Eucharist, saying the Knights would continue to be major sponsors of the U.S. bishops’ Eucharistic revival.

In discussing the Knights’ charitable work, Kelly focused on the Knights’ response to the pandemic.

“Father McGivney died during a pandemic less than a decade after our founding,” Kelly noted. “This pandemic is no different. Our duty was clear from the start. When loss and suffering struck our parishes and communities, the Knights responded, with service and sacrifice.”

In sum, Knights donated nearly $7.7 million to community and parish projects, Kelly said, as well as 1.2 million pounds of food, and almost a quarter million pints of blood.

In 2019, the organization launched the Knights of Columbus Charitable Fund, whereby donors can set aside money to benefit charities aligned with Catholic teaching. Last year, it enabled donors to grant more than $1.9 million to charities.

A message from Pope Francis, read during the opening Mass, included the Pope’s gratitude for the Knights’ “manifold charitable activities.”

We join with the Holy Father in thanking our Knights of Columbus here in our own Diocese and around the nation and globe for stepping up to meet the challenges faced in today’s society and for reaching out to be Christ’s hands to those in need of help.